Vanidicus Alexander
"From discipline comes strength, from strength comes willpower, from willpower comes magic, from magic comes mastery, from mastery comes discipline." Vanidicus ‘Van’ Alexander is the Minister of War of the Magus Senate of Dalaran and Commander of the Battlemage Corp. Van is a career military man who has made a name for himself in service to the Kirin Tor through strong leadership and combat ability. More importantly, he is a straight forward and more practical minded Archmage of the Kirin Tor in contrast to some of his peers and continues to apply his many years of military training to serve the Senate and his peers as best he can. Description Van tries to project himself as a stern man. His eyes are not wide and his lips don't usually hold a smile. There are many hard lines across his face and a light scar on his right cheek. His red beard is full and long hair is tamed into two braids with occasional wisps of hair escaping despite his best efforts, though nowadays he keeps them braided beneath his hood. His nose is slightly crooked from a previous break that didn't heal as well as it could have. His left pinky is shorter then is right, as it is missing the top two portions of it. He tries to carry himself with knightly dignity, having once been a knight before discovering his gift for magic and his stride is measured and rigid. he has recently taken a cannonball blast to the face and despite significant magical and holy healing, He has developed a large scar on his face, causing a slight sneer to his mouth, the blast also took off a chunk of his right ear. Vanidicus also always carries his weapons with him. A sword he has carried since his young days, and a simple staff with a focusing crystal on the head that he carved himself. He has since named his weapons; his sword, Force, and his staff Motivation. Named after the two things that have gotten him to where he is in life. History When Van was born to lesser noble family that had a longstanding tradition of knighthood in Stormwind some 13 years before the Dark portal opened. Growing up it had been his dream to follow in the footsteps of his father, Jordan Alexander. Eventually his dream was realized when he was squired to a knight named Richard Johnson of the Stormwind Army at the age of 13. When the Orcs came pouring through the Dark Portal and the Stormwind Army marched for War his father never came back. Vanidicus remained in Stormwind performing various errent duties until Richard returned, he had been grievously wounded during an initial skirmish and had been evacuated home, missing an arm. When the Orcish Horde came for Stormwind, the recovering Richard took his young squire Van and followed the rest of the surviving humans to Lorderon. Van spent the next six years training under Richard and also a knight named Anderson, when the Orcs came back again and marched north, he was ready to fight to avenge his father. He engaged in several small battles and skirmishes and earned several field promotions in the brutal combat but finally proved himself above and beyond the call of duty during the alliance reinforcement of Quel'thalas, by taking charge of a unit with heavy casualties and saving the unit of a Thalassian noble. For this action he was promoted to Sergeant. After the war he stayed with the army to help train new recruits, eventually he left to return to his foster father, Richard. They retired to a small village in northern Lordaeron and took up smithing and farming. When the third war came and Lorderon fell to the foulest betrayals, the Scourge began to ravage the land. It didn’t take them long to reach his village. Richard and Van rallied a valiant defense but it was ultimately not enough, most died, including Richard, but Van managed to escape with several villagers. Eventually though, the Burning Legion would come in force, and Archimond the Defiler would destroy the realm of Dalaran, killing a great amount of people. As Van and the remaining villagers fled south from the Scourge they met up with fleeing survivors and Magi from Dalaran. It was at this time Van discovered his gift of magic. The Dalaran Survivors and the remaining few villagers banded together and helped protect each other over the months from the rampant undead and Van continued to learn what magic he could from the mages who were willing to teach him. Learning what he could, over time he became proficient in force magic and arcane usage as it allowed the most ammount of brute force. He also made efforts to learn of frost magic over time, but like many other more intricate magics, they for the large part eluded him. He would combine these techniques with his knightly training and act as a battle-mage in defense of those that he held dear. After the battle of Mt. Hyjal and the defeat of the Burning Legion Van returned to stormwind and assisted in its rebuilding and defense. His mage companions returned to Dalaran to rebuild and his few surviving villagers settled in Stormwind. He joined the stormwind army, his rank carrying over, and served as a magical advisor and rear support at the Dark Portal during the War in Outland, defending the gate from demonic incursion into Azeroth. He also participated in the expeditionary fo rces to Northrend and served at Valiance Keep in Borean Tundra, combating the presence of the garrisoned scourge and serving as a squad leader for attacks on local scourge holdings. Eventually he was given leave to visit the recently relocated Dalaran where he reunited with several of his magi friends in the Kirin tor and learned a few tricks, taking time to become proficient in several helpful ways of frost magic. He turned down an invitation to join however as he felt he had a duty to Stormwind first. Upon returning to Valiance Keep he served with distinction during the dealings with Naxxanaar and was promoted to Staff Sergeant. Once the Lich King fell he returned to Stormwind where he primarily oversaw the new recruits and enjoyed some much needed down time. When the cataclysm hit and broke the world, he watched Deathwing land on the gates of Stormwind he fell into a period of depression which lasted for several weeks. How could he fight against something like that with sword and spear and what magics he knew? During this time Van spent much of his free time with the Stormwind Circle of Magi, trying to improve. He served as an in between for the stormwind circle and the Stormwind army during this time trying to coordinate their efforts better as the Horde began a campaign of aggression. He served in multiple theaters across Azeroth; Stonetalon Peaks and Ashenvale primarily as heavy and demolition units. Now that the Mists of Pandaria have parted and the horde on the march the Stormwind Army has sailed to the newly discovered land to fight against the increasingly aggressive horde. Van sailed with the Army as auxillaries to the 7th legion forces to Lion's Landing as part of the overarching Operation: Shieldwall in Pandaria under High Marshall Twinbraid. He served primarily in Scouting and demolitions functions with the Engineering Corp, learning much more about explosives and sparking interest in own studies into the matter. Once the main landing and beachhead was established, Vann acted as part of the Garrison force, engaging in operations and skirmishes against the horde for the duration. Eventually Van's battalion was rotated home on leave to rest and recharge and while on leave the city of Orgrimmar went under seige. The city fell relativly swiftly, only a day or two before Van's battalion was to ship out again. Now that peace finally has a chance to reign, Van is on leave from the Army to study in Dalaran, where he hopes to gain magical knowledge and form strong alliances, it is there where he hopes to make his future. Alternate Future ]] In a possible future where the Iron Horde managed to push into Azeroth. Things didn't go well. Van led Dalarani forces against the Iron Horde in an Alliance defensive and was present at the Seige of Stormwind, but was ultimately defeated and greviously wounded. As the war dragged on and the Azerothians found themselves pushed back further, the Kirin Tor unleashed dark magics long sealed away as a nessecity of war. Many things were nessecary, and many sacrifices were made; for all tools at his disposal had to be used. Activities Since Joining the Magus Senate Van rose swiftly through the Magus Senate. With an applied and rigorous mind he used hisopportunity to learn and master several techniques he had been unable to perform up until this point. With aid from Archmage Verus Baelheit he mastered numerous spells and has developed spells of his own design. To the Kirin Tor he has brought a military mind and has been highly efficient and capable at dangerous fieldwork in service to the Violet Eye, the Senate, and to the Archmagi who would call on him. Some of these activities include purging the Dalaran sewers of arcane rifts and their spawned horrors, various expeditions, and joint work with the First Regiment of the Stormwind Army. Due to his leadership skills and combat acumen, Vanidicus has since risen through the ranks of the Magus Senate to full Senator and has been promoted to Mage-Commander of the once defunct Battlemage Corp. Van swiftly began making reforms, instituting a training regiment and increasing the martial prowess of those under his command. Van has advised the Archmagi on combat matters and has worked directly under Councilor Meriahm Lausten, the former Minister of War, he has worked in Triumvate with The Violet Eye Inteligence organization, before the disbanding, and the Dalaran Guard. Van also held a series of classes on abjuration and transmutation, allowing for the creation of manablades and constructs of magic to be used in battle. As his position as minister of war takes up much of his time, he has since discontinued these classes for the time eing. Since ascending to position of Mage-Commander and eventually minister, Van finds himself doing more paperwork, his least favourite thing. Though Zanbor Emerson absolutely adores it and demands more reports. For his service in the Kirin Tor and assistance to the Alliance, Van has since been officially promoted to captain within the Stormwind Army. Though due to his indefinte leave from the army, this is a mostly ceremonial promotion. ''The Alchemist Campaign Working together with Archmage Baelheit, Vanidicus discovered research that led to the unearthing of the work of one of the first one-hundred human magi, a man called 'The Alchemist.' After disovering the locations of several tombs, each containing fragments of the journals and recipe for a potion, the Magus Senate Deployed a series of excursions to recover them. During the first outing, Van deployed ahead of the main body of magi to serve as scout, checking the area out, as they were deep within Forsaken territory. Finding nothing of note, he called the Magi in and they entered the first tomb. The tomb was filled with strange two-dimensional shades, flat as paper and mean as an angry bull and unaffected by physical strikes. They slunk in the shadows and struck cowardly at the magi group, fortunately the recovery of the journal page was swift and the group was able to ex-filtrate easily. The next set of research revealed the next tomb location, a crypt buried underneath Stromgard. The past histories of Syndicate and Ogre activity and the presence of the shades had the Tor on high alert for this deployment. Van took Kalecthos Delanor and Jaine Winterchill ahead as an advance guard to secure the site and to establish a portal connection. Unfortunately, due to magical disruption, a close proximity site was unfeasible and due to building shade presence forced the group to retreat to the now defunct Stromgard mage tower, fighting shades along the way. After reaching the tower and erecting hastily constructed wards, the three established a portal link up and brought the rest of the Magus Senate through. Van transferred command to Archmage Baelheit and they fought through the ruined city, shades leaping from the shadows. Eventually their progress was blocked by a wall of darkness, the magi together were able to concentrate enough power to breach a hole in the darkness and with Van holding it open, allowed the group to get through, Van diving through as it closed. They broke into the crypt with little further difficulty save for minor shade presence and a large one which was defeated by combined powers, they then evacuated. It was during this expedition that Van proved himself a highly capable leader to the Magus Senate and Van began working with the Battlemagi. The third outing would prove to be a success for the Senate, but disaster for Vanidicus. The third tomb was found in the Badlands buried in a mountain and forgotten till it was unearthed by some unfortunate workers. Van once again led an advance party and found the tomb entrance. The shades this time didn't confront them directly until they they tried to enter and only sought to repel them. They succeeded and Senior Magus Tammini, Archmagi Sprocket, and Senator Kalecthos were forced to retreat to establish a portal link up location. After bringing the main body through, they approached the tomb, the shade presence increasing massively. Vanidicus and Kalecthos remained outside while the group went inside. Van and Kalec began a running battle to distract the shades, getting separated early on as they ran through the small canyons. This would prove to be bad, as Van was struck in the chest by a phantom blade. Looping around, Van got back to the entrance to the crypt and held the shades off until Kalec got back to reinforce him, but not before taking several wounds to the chest and legs and left arm. He was evac'd by Kalecthos and Baelheit through a portal to Dalaran as they began to get overwhelmed. The most recent find has been beneath Stormwind itself. Finding a crypt deep beneath the mage's quarter in the city, shades began to quickly overwhelm the group. Van rallied the group defenders to himself and began directing them into various defensive patterns, allowed the rest of the group to gather the things they needed. As they were backed into a corner, Van and the other Battlemagi held back the tide until they could escape, though Kalecthos was injured. The last location was found in the Blasted Lands, long ago the Alchemist was burried in the once lush forest; now a fel-tainted ruin. After Van was fully recovered from his wounds suffered in the last two expeditions he set off to find the location of the tomb. Based on research done by Baelheit he was able to find the general area, but was repelled by the high Demon activity. Returning to the senate with his findings and reporting to the governing body. The next day he gathered the newly formed Battlemage Corp and deployed ahead of the main group to establish a staging ground, the group moved noth from Surwhich and encountered heavy resistance from entrenched demons. After killing a small group, the three went engaged stealth operations, moving quickly through the tainted land and erecting wards around a defensible position. They then stabilized the portal link and brought the bulk of the Magi through. It was not so easy however, shades in the area, one content to watch from afar, made one last mighty effort to defeat the magi. Assembling into a great construct, it hammered on the wards as magi came through from Dalaran. Eventually it broke through, sending the magi of the battlemage corp reeling from feedback and began to attack the magi. Van recovered quickly and gave the order to scatter while the battlemagi put themselves between the shade construct and the magi. With a combined effort the shade was defeated and the group moved north. As they moved they found the land twisted and blackened without even any fel taint, the land sucked dry. As they approached the site, a demonic creature lept out and attacked the group. The creature revealed himself to be the alchemist, an impossibly ancient being who had survived all these years luring magi to him and draining them. The Alchemist flickered between a decrepit yet corrupted form and a mighty demon. The Alchemist took them by surprise and lept onto Archmage Vincent and began to suck him dry, Van unable to make it in time, he settled for ripping the being off of him with the help of Lord Arranax DeVin. The Alchemist rampaged around the group, scattering their numbers, until Archmage Baelheit was able to piece together the spell required to defeat the once-human creature. Giving the order to defend the Archmage at all costs, Van and the other magi encircled the Archmage to protect him, Kalec Delnathor taking a hit as the Alchemist knocked him away with inhuman strength. Shortly thereafter Archmage Baelheit was able to prepare the spell and blast the being, stripping him of his power and reducing him to a decrepit, barely alive, nearly rotting being, ranting and raving, it was pityable. As everyone else watched the pitiful creature scream hatred towards them, Baelheit, a decendent of a first one-hundred magi, stabbed The Alchemist through the chest, killing him finally. The corpse of The Alchemist crumbled into dust shortly after due to extreme old age. The Alchemists tome(spellbook) was recovered from the site and now rests in the Dalaran Vaults, to be experimented on carefully for the good of all Azerothians. Kidnapping of the Archbishop Some time later the Clergy of the Holy Light called a meeting of the big players of the Alliance in a mission involving the Archbishop of the Clergy of the Holy Light. Three representatives of the Magus Senate were chosen; Councilor Baelheit the diplomat, Vice-Chancellor Vorien in Chancellor Emerson's stead, and Commander Alexander, head of the battlemagi. Along with Councilor DeVin as an interpreter. The four of them traveled to the Stormwind Cathedral to hear the summons. The news that the Archbishop had been kidnapped was delivered to the assembled devout and armsmen. The magi of the Kirin Tor had been called to act as transport to the Northern Realm of Tirisfal and as martial aid. The magi opened a mass transit portal with the aid of several other kirin tor members to move the group. They arrived and the magi blanketed the group in a shroud of concealment and they moved to the Undercity to negotiate for the bishops release only to be given a box of desecrated remains. Van was shocked and dismayed by this, he wanted to strike, having seen this man and attended his sermons, but was given orders to stand down. The group was given an hour to evacuate the area before artillery bombardment of plague explosives began. They traveled north to the resting place of Foal, outside the former bastion of scarlet power, the old monastery. There the bishops purified the remains of the Archbishop and found his soul was lost, tied to the land, doomed to wander. The group dispersed to try and sense his soul and call out to him. Van, wanting dearly to save the man who had given him and his soldiers some solace when they needed it, searched with the others, and eventually he found the soul of the Archbishop wandering the plagued woods. Van called to him, tried to get his attention with praises to the Light, but he knew none, only having attended mass and knowing no liturgies. Eventually he managed to get the attention of the Clergies paladins and priests and guide them to the spirit of the man. They were able to summon him back to his ashes and preserve his soul, giving it peace and letting him move onto the next life. Van was very upset by all this, a man he highly respected was killed, and a high ranking alliance official at that. He drank alot for a while, but soon composed himself to return to his duties. Hunting the Hunter Several weeks later after being promoted to the Vanguard rank within the Senate and taking a greater roll in organizing Kirin Tor paramilitary forces, Van was having celebratory drinks with several members who had recently risen to prominence when an alert went out over the Signet Ring communication system. The alert was a top priority alarm signifying that an alarm from the Arcane Vaults had been triggered by one of the workers there; the Vaults had been compromised and an artifact had been taken. Quickly running to the Violet Citadel to find that the other magi were beginning to assemble. The council ordered the Citadel locked down; Van tightened security and ordered his battlemagi to seal the exits. In the now sealed citadel, Vanidicus and the assembled senate magi began to search for clues. While they were searching a vault worker presented Councilman Baelheit with a list of missing items, it read one; The Alchemist's Tome. Finding no clues, the three council members present deigned it a worthy enough task to enlist the aid of the Eye of Dalaran. Baelheit was called away to lead the search around the city and left the investigation in Vanidicus' hands. Using it's considerable arcane might, the assembled magi used it to scry for clues. The eye revealed that a Night Elf that had been reported moving about the city public spaces had broken into the citadel and had neutralized the wards with demonic power and stolen The Alchemist's Tome and left as quickly as he had entered, taking nothing else. The senate then sent Councilman Zanbor Emerson to Darnassus to meet with Dalaran Ambassador Zalphar and the Night Elves for operational permission within the city. After spending time gathering data and negeotiating with the Night Elves the senate bided their time, helping the Night Elves keep watch and wait while the Eye of Dalaran was reconfigured to be able to find the Demon Hunter. Eventually they found fel trace in Darnassus and went to investigate. After finding several powerful concealment wards and patches of groing Fel Fire the Magus Senate quickly moved to rid the land of the source. Expecting the Hunter they found a Satyr, who they swiftly killed, but not before the Satyr shouted a warning, seemingly to or about a hunter. Upon realizing that the source of the Fel Taint lay deeper underground, they went into the barrow dens, finding the Demon Hunter at last, poised to kill a druid. Rushing to help the druid they attacked the hunter, allowing the Druid to escape. The hunter agrily attacked them back, calling them fools, before grabbing the alchemists tome and escaping, telling that they had just let a demon in disguise loose. Oops. Several Kirin Tor cleanup teams were dispatched to the city to help deal with the fel problems. In the interim the scrying teams of Dalaran worked hard to find the Demon Hunter. Once unable to triangulate the hunters location further, they narrowed it down to the Night Elven Territories in Northern Kalimdor. To ascertain the location of the hunter, Van took a team of battlemagi to do reconnaissance, sending two other teams out to search other locations. Upon arriving, the Battlemagi established a focal point to sweep out from and found they had walked into a trap as they were picked off one by one. The hunter had not killed them though, Vanidicus later found them imprisoned. Van was unable to release them and it was only when he was thrown through the shadowy wall did the imprisoned battlemagi get a chance to fight back. Repelling the demon hunter and wounding him and managing to cut off a piece of his kilt, staining it with blood in the process. They quickly retreated and turned the cloth over to the council for them to work with the scrying teams to properly find the hunter. The utilization of the hunter's gear to locate him was a success. Vanidicus and Battlemage Rosenthal found his hideout in Feralas and opened a portal nexus, while Jaine maintained the portal Van scouted ahead. Upon reinforcement from the senate they marched upon his mountaintop refuge and found themselves trapped in a circle of fel fire. They found themselves ambushed by the hunter, sustaining a few casulties, and eventually flushing out the Demon Hunter, an elf named Nighthaunter. After a brief combat the Hunter accepted defeat and relinquished his weapons. After a session of the Nighthaunter yelling at the Senate, the "Druid" Banehollow, actually the demon. Showed up, having stolen The Alchemist's Tome from the Demon Hunter's allies by killing them, he then effortlessly shrugged off the Senate's attacks, paralyzed them, and departed after making ominous threats regarding Dalaran. The Demon Hunter was then bound by the battlemage corp, and restrained and taken to The Violet Hold, awaiting trial, for a reason that Vanidicus cannot comprehend. After a trial, the demon hunter was coerced into aiding the Magus Senate. The battlemage corp took him from the hold and transported him to Banehollow's location in felwood. Once reinforced by the Senate they took off into the demon corrupted barrow dens. The hunter hid them in shadow to avoid enemies but eventually they were blocked in a ritual sacrifice chamber. Many desecrated bodies lay strewn about, but one man was barely alive, begging for help. None would come them as a portal opened in him, allowing a doomguard to crawl from his body and attack the senate. The Demon Hunter took advantage of the distraction and used the opportunity to get ahead and find Banehollow. Defeating the demon the magi found the hunter engaged in battle with the Dreadlord already and the Alchemist's Tome fueling several portal gates. Vanidicus ordered magi to try and hold the portals shut while the rest of the senate fought the demon. As magi managed to close the portals the demon's strength waned and eventually he was defeated. In the chaos the demon hunter had grabbed the tome before the senate could and began sealing the portals. He walked towards the last one, repelling the magi's attempts to bind him with shielding spells from the spellbook. As he stepped through the last closing portal, he tossed the book back to the magi as a token of goodwill. The Demon Hunter is currently MIA to the chancellor's displeasure. Dark Martyr For his efforts in tracking down and reacquiring the The Alchemist's Tome, Vanidicus was elevated to the rank of Archmage. He now works in a triumvirate under the Minister of the Interior, Councilor Arranax DeVin; The Eye, commanded by Lord Mordred Kalarest, The Dalaran Guard, commanded by Guard-Captain Matiff Durthan, and the Battlemage Corp, led by Van. The three managed to keep things stable for several weeks while the more diplomatic minded members of the Senate sought out new relations. After a week of talks, Councilor Verus Baelheit arranged a meeting with the Dark Iron faction, The Hand of Thaurissan. The senate met under the pretense of the exchange of knowledge, but in addition to that the Hand had arranged for the Senate to take possession of a fragment of the Cipher of Damnnation, that which had brought Ragnaros into Azeroth. En route to secure the transfer of the fragment, buried with the cities chief architect, they walked in on an action of thievery unheard of. Through unknown means the last remnants of the Twilight's Hammer had made a desperate bid to do something, anything, now that their masters lay defeated. They fell upon the senate and dark irons, giving the cultist leaders a chance to escape. Defeating them, they gave chase but were slowed by a shadowflame elemental the cultists sacrificed themselves too. As they reached the surface, the dark irons's and the senate eliminated the last of them as their leader ranted and raved for them to make their sacrifice worth it, and to martyr themselves before vanishing into a shadowy gate. The Dark Iron's and the Senate have since begun a search. Working with the Earthern Ring the Magus Senate and the Dark Iron Dwarves managed to track the cipher fragment to the elemental planes. They recieved a tip off that the fragment was being moved into the elemental plane of air. Utilizing shamanistic help and complex portal magics, the senate was able to infiltrate the plane of air and intercept the fragment. Upon arrival they found the remaining air elementals in turmoil and vast gulfs of sky. Utilizing provided Gryphons they assaulted the ritual location where the fragment was being brought through. They were intercepted by cultists on enslaved Storm Drakes. During a lengthy battle, Van was knocked from his drake, saved only by timely aid from the Dark Irons. They managed to get to the ritual site and intercept the fragment and disrupt the ritual. During the fight they slew the defending cultists who bound elementals to fight for them, and finally captured one to interrogate. When he tried to escape Van immolated him, killing the cultist. The fragment portal was collapsing and a voice came through, along with a faint image of Deepholme, their next hunt. After some time speaking with the Earthen Ring, the Magus Senate and Hand of Thaurissan. managed to get into deepholme. Van and Nathul Furlbrow, along with a battlemage summoner and a detail of guards, made a forward advance into Deepholme, pinpointing a proper site for a portal nexus, which the senate stepped through. The group cast cloaking wards and began to move quietly towards the Twilight camp. Their sublty was ruined when a Gyreworm attacked. The enemy, now alerted to their presence, did nothing. The group reached the Twilight Camp and found it barren, save for scores of corpses, sacrificed in ritual, some slain, some suicide. They head sounds in a building, rushing in to investigate, they were confronted by a cultist, blocked by powerful twilight magic. He informed them that the cipher had been used and that deepholme was soon to fall. He gave them a choice, rush to stop the cipher's effects, or stop the Twilight Martyr. He then slit his throat on the altar to his gods. After brief but heated argument, they decided to prevent the damage to Deepholme. Rushing west they found elementals being bound into a huge conglomerate, they killed the elementals to prevent their fusion, and toppled the earthen abomination. As it fell they tried to get back in time to catch the Martyr, but found only a closing portal which burst forth with a deluge of water, taking the senate by surprise. The cultists had fled to the water plane. The plane of water was a difficult recon. Several spells and enchantments of water breathing were required and the area aroun the entry point was still tumultulous and difficult to set portal nexus' up. Pinpointing its location in the water plane and getting inside through the Abyssal maw. It was not a pleasent entry. The rift between worlds had shrunk greatly in size with the Earthen ring, but it was a rough journey. After being spat out on the other end and vomiting up a minow, Van led the magi to intercept the cultists. They found the Twilight Martyr and his disciples attempting to widen the rift once more. The minions fell easily, but the Martyr spoke several words and the Senate was betrayed by one of their own. A previously brainwashed member, Aithnea Escol, a powerful shield magi. She erected powerful wards, strengthened by the Martyr's magics. They were able to break the barrier and slay the lieutenant of the martyr, but the man himself was able to escape to his last safe haven, the fire plane. The senate manage to break into the plane of fire, already decimated by the Cenarion assault. In the smoldering ruins of the land, the cultist rituals were easy to spot and locate. Guard Captain Durthan, already intricatly linked with fire magics and battlemage Nathul Furlbrow moved ahead to bring in the senate via portal nexus while Councilor Baelheit remained behind to maintain the link to the elemental planes. They confronted a fire ascendant, one ofthe few remaining twilight cultists gifted with such power. He led a faction of cultists determined to use the cipher to birth a new firelord. They were reinforced by a second group of cultists, The Eventide Contingency. At the time an unknown splinter faction working with the martyr. They were skilled combatants that fought well, but ultimatly failed to defend the flame ascendant, who was slain midritual. The Eventide contingency used the ensuing chaos of the failing ritual to abduct Councilor Meriahm Lausten and flee with the Twilight Martyr. The fragment of the cipher of damnation was recovered from the corpse of the ascendant. With nowhere left to run the Twilight Cultists retreated to their ruined fortresses and dilapidated safe houses. They were weeded out one by one, and the Councilor was in non of them. The Magus Senate Scrying Corp evntually found the cultists, having no planes left to run too they had hid in the remains of the Bastion of Twilight. The ruined structure provided many hiding spots. The Battlemage Corp made the first intrusion, setting up a warded beachhead deep within the underground fortress. They triggered many traps and established a safe zone for which a portal nexus could be established. After bringing the senate and the dark irons through, they found the Martyr and the leader of The Eventide Contingency in meeting with their forces. The two leaders retreated while they were ambushed by additional Twilight forces. The elites of the Eventide Contingency proved much more ferocious this time, quickly inflicting several wounds and casualties before being summoned by their dark masters and retreating, leaving one member behind, which was a dazed Councilor Lausten, dressed in Twilight garb. They were found again in the ruined throne room of Cho'gal himself, trying to bring forth old god creations. They used brainwashing techniques and devastating attacks to disrupt the senate. But as they were ever so slowly driven back, the leader of the Eventide Contingency, identified by Kira Frostheart as Nox, betrayed the Martyr, claiming that he had fallen from favor with their Gods and stabbed him through the heart with a magic dagger, shattering his defenses and triggering a mutation into a warped and pitiable creature. The senate put him down soon enough, tentacles and all. His mutated and desecrated corpse was retrieved for study in Dalaran and casualties and wounded were taken back. All senate members affected by the corrupting magic were placed in the Hold until they were deemed free of corruption. So ended the Twilight threat. 'Advancement and Appointment to the Council' In the following months Van assisted Minister Meriahm Lausten in building up the Ministry of War. He added more battlemagi to his retinue and began a series of outreach programs to other Alliance military organizations. In addition to this, he also sought reconciliation from the church in the form of mutual teachings and joint work with the Paladin organizations, particularly with the Silver Hand Chapter. During this time Vanidicus also led Dalarani forces against the Horde in Stonetalon Mountains and continued to serve the council in an advisory role. For his efforts he was promoted to the Outer-Council of the Senate, granting his authority over other Archmagi. He was then deployed by the council to check out a series of anomalies across Azeroth, taking few with him and leaving his lieutenant, Nathul Furlbrow, in his place. He has since returned and is taking this rare downtime to continue building up military alliances. Of note being the Violet Company, a subfaction of Dalaran dedicated to more specific training regiments of battlemagi. During the crisis of chronomantic disturbances afflicting Azeroth, Minister Lausten announced her stepping down from the council in a capacity as head of the war department. Van was appointed Minister of War of the Magus Senate of Dalaran. He began to make reforms immediately, further organizing the rank structure of the ministry to establish a better chain of command. He also set to work creating a more efficient general staff to better deal with logistical reports now coming across his desk. Van is still getting used to not calling the other councilors 'sir'. Infinite Possibilities In his capacity as field commander and as minister of war. During the Temporal Crisis Van undertook so many missions that too list them all in short would be pointless. Please refer to the main page. 'The Iron Horde Invades' The invasion of the Iron Horde was the result of a lack of foresight, failure to heed the warnings of their alternate selves, and overwhelming force on the Iron Horde's part. Van sent additional forces to Nethergarde in light of increased portal activity only to have them wiped out. 88% of Nethergarde garrison forces were destroyed and 94% battlemagi auxilla reinforcements were wiped out. Violet Company forces suffered 90% casualties. Van has spent his whole life since this point dedicated to killing orcs, authorizing new war programs, and formulating plans to kill orcs. Van is absolutely horrified at the idea what the alternate future may come to pass and is considering many options he normally never consider, much to his eternal shame. The massive loss of forces has since stabilized as recruitment efforts have gone up. Van oftentimes finds himself at the head of execution teams responsible for carrying out field objectives to push back the Iron Horde. The Magus Senate, in cooperation with several other alliance factions formed a War Council, headed by Inquisitor Stromheart, in order to combat the Iron Horde. Vanidicus spent the next several weeks performing extermination missions, carrying out assassinations of key targets, and eliminating artillery positions. It was during this time the rapidly infamous Divisio Ordinatti was formed and many new weapons both beneficial and horrible were developed under his watch. After weeks of fighting, the Iron Horde was eventually pushed back and Van breathed a sigh of relief, that the dark future might not come to pass. The Magus Senate rallied with the other alliance forces and stormed through the portal, while the other forces pushed ahead, the senate stayed part of the rear guard. '''Shattered' The Magus Senate fought long and hard with the rear guard to maintain position, but it was an untenable one. As the hero's of the alliance pressed onward, the magus senate in their flank position were slowly overrun. After a regrouping of orcs and subsequent heavy bombardment, the coordination of the magus senate was broken and the forces scattered. As the Dalarani Forces were routed and the portal collapsing around them, Vanidicus gave the order to go dark and to establish camps where they could until additional portals could be opened to Draenor for reinforcements. Fleeing with several battlemagi into the jungle, Van and his group kept on the move, taking out orcs where they could and sleeping where they could. The jungle was death. All kinds of toothed flowers, flesh eating trees, the prevalent thought was that Ner'zhul had done the orcs a favor by blowing up the Draenor in their time line. After overhearing some some Shadowmoon Orcs speak of their Valley, Van decided that they would migrate south and try to find a way to contact the other senators. The trip south was not easy, and over several days the group of 7 magi was whittled down to three as the Orc's brutal tactics and home field advantage wore them down. Eventually finding the exit to the jungle nigh impossible to reach through areas of dense orc camps and jungle foliage, the group decided to head south to the Orc seaport and attempt to steal a ship. At the docks, the Battlemagi found the war machine in full effect, the infiltration went well, cloaking themselves in magic, they managed to sneak far into the docks. They snuck onto a small ship, and tried to cast off, but found the technology unresponsive. At the cost of one of his magi's lives, the ship was eventually started, and they managed to steer it...poorly...away, attracting alot of attention. The commander and his remaining battlemage soldier eventually crashed into the shore of Shadowmoon valley. The orcs landed shortly after, but the magi were long gone. Eventually they left, unable tor reclaim their ruined ship, and Van went back to recover parts from it, where he was found by Cleric Velianaris, a night elven priest of the magus senate, she brought him back to her camp, where she had managed to find Minister Liridian and Matiff Durthan, one of Van's battlemagi and seconded to the Ministry of Justice. At the camp were several battlemagi and Night Elven sentinels who had come through with Velianaris. Van now conducts recon missions of the Valley as further battlemagi and senators find their way to the magical beacon established at the camp. After a month of consolidating, tracking down members, and neutralizing threats to the recovered senators, the senate had finally recovered enough manpower to attempt to contact Dalaran. Using a chrono-beacon entrusted to the battlemagi by Vice-Chancellor Dawnstrider the senators who had remained on Azeroth. Despite an attempt during the ritual of a magi who had revealed himself as a warlock, the senate was able to establish a lock on with their timeline and return home. The senate now builds power back home, ready to return to Draenor with a much stronger power base and establish bases and outposts across the continent. Personality and traits Two decades of military training have given Vanidicus a no nonsense and structured outlook on life. He believes in order above all things and while he is open to new ideas and modifications to existing strategy on the basis of pragmatism, he does not approve of wild deviation from the norm and is slow to accept new ideas and doctrine. He instead preferrs to rely on tried and true techniques and rigorous practice. He applies this outlook to how he goes about his studies and training in magic. Van strongly approves of Dalaran’s now official ties to the Alliance, but he strongly disapproves of Jaina Proudmoore’s appointment to leader of the Kirin Tor. Van sees her as an unfit leader driven by vengeance and emotion over practical doctrine which he believes will lead to aggression above and beyond what is required and rapid action without attention to consequences; a practice which Van intensely dislikes. Despite Vanidicus’s hardline personality, he is not without a softer side. He deeply appreciates the company of comrades who have earned his trust and jokes occasionally when the mood strikes him, and enjoys being sarcastic to other peers of his rank. Van also has an intense dislike of paperwork. Slows things down. Part of Van's motivation is born out of a deep fear that he may become like his alternate self, a desperate and dark man who can justify any action, no matter how horrible. His recent actions to kill orcs and prevent that future may be having the opposite effect he desires. He is trying to remain a good man and be unclouded by vengeance. Van has an intense dislike of forbidden magics; blood magic, necromancy, void, and twilight. He is strongly in favor of regulation and control of these magics. His hatred stems from witnessing their alternate selves devolve into madmen under the corrupting influence of dark magic and powers beyond their control. Van considers himself above political machinations. He has no desire for further increase in rank and detests scheming and backstabbing, believing it to be the work of cowards and those who reach above where they should be. Rank is earned, not taken. 'Spiritual Beliefs' Van is a devout follower of the holy light. After more then twenty years of soldiering and war he has gained a healthy respect for the power of The Light, having been healed by it many times and had his wounded men healed and bolstered by it as well. Every Sunday he goes to mass in his home city of Stormwind. Lately however his faith in the church has been shaken. While he maintains a devout belief in The Light, The Church has fallen in his esteem due to the acts of Men. More zealous and fervorous elements within the church have acted against his new home of Dalaran. Van considers these acts dishonorable and shameful. Upon the revealing of these actions, the Archbishop of The Church of The Holy Light himself addressed the Magus Senate, declaring his lack of knowledge and inability to control the elements within the church acting against other Alliance Organizations. Vanidicus has since reconciled with the disruptive elements and continues to attend sunday mass when his duties permit him time. Equipment Vanidicus has used much equipment over the years, swords, shields and spears, he has come to favor a select few since his tutelage under the mages of Dalaran. - '' Force. The broadsword he has carried since his first days in the Army. It has been in his hand through one hundred battles and will participate in one hundred more. He had not named the sword for a long time. Eventually, using what little skill in enchanting he possessed at the time and the help of the Stormwind Circle of Magi, he was able to enchant the blade with a magical aura, giving it an absurdly sharp cutting edge as a displacement aura around it pushes material aside. It also maintains its strength as it were newly forged. Van uses the blade as a focus as well, using it to project bursts of arcane force to augment his combat power. '- Motivation. ' Since being elevated to Archmage, Vanidicus has used his vastly increased skills and ability to craft himself a new staff. His new staff is a solid adamantite rod with carved grip, it is tipped with a green manacrystal carved by Van himself. The style is similar to many other Kirin Tor staves but is slightly smaller and weighted differently to allow it to be swung about with one hand. ''- 'Flintlocke Pistol.' '' Since the standardization and introduction of firearms into the military, most NCO’s or higher have carried a sidearm of some sort and Captain Alexander was no exception. A finely crafted side arm with small carvings done by his dwarven friend, Angris Stoutheart, it is capable of firing two shots before reloading. Van keeps this sidearm on a small holster on his lower back, hoping to keep it concealed as to be a surprise when he uses it. - '''Kirin Tor Communicator':' '''One of dozens of identical rings worn by every Mage of Dalaran. Focusing on the ring activates its ley-channel, enabling contact with colleagues over vast distances. Van has since modified his communicator, inscribing the spellwork and the gem into his hood so he may use it hands free and with to make it less apparent he is using it. - '''Kirin Tor Isignia Necklace':' '''Crafted by Senate Artificer Kalecthos Delnathor, this enchanted glass and brass necklace is worn prominently around his neck and onto his chest over his tabard. Hung from a thin yet highly sturdy metal chain, this necklace is not just for show. When pressed it will create varying levels of Illumination, each subsequent press will increase the illumination, with a 6th press creating fire, with a 7th turning it off. Van will typically conceal this under his gear during combat as to not have it snag on something or be pulled on by a opponant. - '''Modified Dalarani-Pattern Combat Armor. '''This specially made suit of armor is inscribed with layers and layers of warding. The metal is specifically forged with magically imbued steel and adamantium and ritually enchanted with anti-daemonic and anti-necromantic energies. The armor consists of 3 layers; a bodyglove, enchanted with various wards and small implants, a layer of enchanted chain mail, and the imbued plates. The armor is worn typically with an imbued chain hood and features the following devices: * '''Alchemical Injection Device': Connecting to an implanted series of tubes, the storage packets contain a series of combat drugs and nutrients to assist the wearer in battle. * Pneumatic gauntlets: War Ministry supplied technology which allows the user to augment the strength of their arms and deliver empowered blows to the target. * Head Sheath: A deploy-able helmet exists within the armor. Upon activation a series of plates fold out of the neck, chest, and back armor to encase the head. When the helmet is deployed, the armor is hermatically sealed. The helmet contains a communicator, a re-breather and filtration systems, and magical vision wards. The armor contains enough oxygen to supply two minutes and seventeen seconds of breathing. * Mark 1 (Custom) Holobracer: A custom and original pattern of the Holobracer commonly used by the Magus Senate. It contains targeting and control systems and is patched into the communications network to allow the transferring of inforunes and data. It also possesses scanning and augery devices for data collection. It is also capable of projecting hololithic images. * Mana-Siphons: Within the gauntlets of the armor are Mana Siphons. Technology developed by Muzula Silverweave for the Dalaran Ministry of War. The Siphons allow rapid draining of energy from a target to power armor systems or fed through purifiers to empower the siphoner. The siphons are prone to overloading and the purifiers cannot handle extreme loads. - Mark 1 (Custom) Arc Spellgun: A early version of the Arc Spellgun in use by the Battlemage Corp. A regular pistol converted into a spellgun capable of discharging bursts of elemental energy. As it was an early conversion and not built from the ground up, the pistol is not as reliable as a standard issue spellgun and lacks the self recharging capability. However, the burst capacity and total energy discharge ability per shot is superior. - Drop Shields: Products of the Ministry of War research department, these grenade sized devices can be thrown at the ground after being primed, upon detonation a 6 foot diameter sphere of protective energy will be engaged to absorb limited (but not insignificant) amounts of damage. Relationships Vanidicus has many friendships in the guard and maintains contact with his former villagers in stormwind and his magi friends in Dalaran. Now that he lives in the mage city he gets to see them a lot more. He has had no significant long term romantic relationships, but a person of his affection remains garrisoned at Valiance Keep. He hopes to one day see her again. Van has since moved on from any previous relationships and has begun a committed relationship with a fellow senator, Mab Nimue, a very gentle woman in stark contrast to himself. He very much enjoys the dynamic, he does much of his confiding in her and makes attempts to be more gentle and less rigid, with some success. Due to time issues with their involvement in the war against the Iron Horde, the two have continued their relationship throughout issues with nobility titles and affairs. While they are not able to marry, they are together when they can be and continue to work well together on administrative matters. They're having a daughter together. Trivia Van prefers to wear red, as it was the color of his old regiment's standard. Van has written a book. Category:Dalaran Human Category:Magus Senate of Dalaran Category:Characters Category:Mages Category:Kirin Tor Category:Soldiers Category:Human Category:War Criminals Category:Ministry of War Category:Inner Council